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Monthly Archives: February 2015

Although it is very nearly the end of February, it is still cold outside. The bulbs are coming up which suggests the gradual onset of Spring and as the nights get lighter so Brenda’s mood improves. This week I made the most divine coq au vin which is a meal to enjoy heartily either for a Sunday lunch or a dinner on a chilly night. Brenda lapped it up like a demented poodle which suggests that you should try it at home as it really is delicious.

3. Fry them off in the by-now sizzling oil – you’ll likely need to do it in batches (I did it in 2 batches) – setting aside in a warm dish once done

4. Snip your bacon into strips of about an inch directly into the casserole dish now vacated by the chicken and fry, along with your little shallots, then after a minute or two, the garlic.

5. As soon as the bacon and onions are going a lovely golden brown (don’t let the garlic burn though), tip in the brandy. It doesn’t matter if it “flames”, just be aware that it might!

6. The alcohol will only take a few seconds to boil/flame away so be ready to pop the browned chicken pieces straight back into the casserole.

7. Now pour in your bottle of beautiful full bodied red wine ( some purists will claim that it needs to be a burgundy – we are more liberal than that!). So long as you choose a rich full bodied wine, you will enjoy the finished dish rather more. However, if you use cheap, thin wine, from whichever country, that will influence the end result and not in a good way….)

8. If, like me, you could not resist a glass or two of the wine that was meant to go in as per stage 7 above, DO NOT WORRY!!! Just top up with chicken stock until the chicken pieces are nicely bathed (not drowning)

9. Now nestle in the thyme, rosemary and bay leaves – you can tie them together and make a bouquet garni which will make it slightly easier to fish the herbs out later but that’s up to you – I didn’t.

10. Once it’s simmering away nicely, pop the lid on and the whole thing into the oven for about 45 mins

11. At this point I took it out, left it to cool and then put it in the fridge for 2 days. If you are too hungry to wait 48 hours to eat, don’t worry, you can fry off the mushrooms for about 5-10 mins in some more oil/butter, tip them into the casserole, test and adjust the seasoning (probably need to add lots of lovely sea salt and black pepper) and continue to oven cook for about another half an hour.

12. Assuming you have done as I suggested and let it marinate (overnight or even better, for 2 days), now fry off the mushrooms as per above, add to the dish and cook at 160°C for 45 mins till bubbling, aromatic and slightly reduced. The sauce absolutely should not be thick, the consistency of single cream is great.

13. Either way (so, whether you eat straight away or have returned to the dish after its “resting” period), serve in warmed dishes with a good scattering of roughly chopped flat leaf parsley and a warm crunchy French baguette and a simple dressed salad.

We don’t often say this, largely because we think a lot of quick recipes simply aren’t up to scratch, but this one can be done in a trice and is absolutely delicious. Please see the video which shows that with five ingredients and seasoning, you can have this recipe ready to chill before serving within 15 minutes.

Here we have the preview to our visit to Mrs Clam, the ghastliest landlady in Brighton. I had to drive to Brighton, while Fanny sat in the back being chauffeured. Trouble is she can’t stand my driving (she’s an appalling passenger), so to overcome the problem Fanny hit the bottle. This caused me concern so obviously I drove at higher speeds than would be desirable at any other time, and the faster I drove the more Fanny drank! This was a disastrous start to filming, but after we arrived (and luckily for all of us) I remained unmoved and just yelled viciously at Fanny to sober up. Fanny, lying on the floor while being eyeballed by me sinisterly was understandably, able to sober up remarkably quickly…